i disagree

9gag

 

You know what? I do not agree.
I’m not saying I need to have it all (although yes, it is nice to be able to afford anything you want).

The first thing that comes to my mind is:
How many college students can receive scholarships that cover 90% of their tuition? Not all of the students. Even if all of them had a great GPA, awesome SAT scores, amazingly high IQ – even then some would do better and would “deserve” the scholarships. Actually yes, those who receive 90% of their tuition are probably not the 99%, they are the other 1%. True.

So how about you are not a college senior, rather a bright young mind with an awesome idea. Surprisingly, the idea requires money in order to happen. I know, not always, but… most of the time. Well, then you are fucked, unless you do get a loan, or a credit card, or any other kind of financing. And what happens is you’re nailed. To the bank.

By the way, for some of us it was impossible to start saving at age 17. Or at age 29, as is my case. Mostly because I do not live in the US, I suppose. But then again, while the 99% is currently mostly a US thing, it spreads far beyond the US of A. Those of you who managed to start saving at age 17, did so because of the US financial system, no?

Trust me, it’s not just you who’s behind your current lifestyle, whether you like it or not.

OK, so does that put a new spin on the 99%?

I am not saying you are wrong – I am not saying that hard work is not the way. I actually like the philosophy behind enoughism.

But I am saying that you’re simplifying the situation a bit too much, maybe twisting it a little.

You’re too quick to acquit Wall Street. The banks. The entire “western” financial system. A bit hasty.

The bank should, ideally, try to protect you, because (read before you jump!) you are, essentially, its asset. No, not because of sheer idealism. Apparently, idealism has no place in the world of business and big money.

There is one example I can give of something that kills you, even though its life depends on your well-being: the virus. I’ve thought about it, and I still fail to understand why a virus would kill its host. Maybe my thinking is a bit too shallow, but I am no scientist – it’s just simple common sense. And, yes, I am simplifying and generalizing. But it does make sense.

The banks should have been there to protect the people from what has happened, from what, essentially, the financial system has brought upon itself. Why? Again – because it’s the people who let the banks be. Willingly or not.

Those, who are in the know, purposefully closed their eyes in the face of collapse. They lied. They played the edge just a tad too long. And then we all fell.

“We” are the common folk – we do not know the specifics of the financial market. We go to the specialists and let them explain things to us in a simple language, so that we can decide whether we want to mortgage that house, or not. “They” are the ones who need to tell us whether there is risk, as we ourselves cannot figure it out. We are semioticians, journalists, cooks, not financiers.

We put our lives in their hands – this is trust!

I am not a “communist,” although I am sure someone has already slapped that moniker on me. I do not despise capitalism, or the US, or investment bankers.

I just fear immense greed. I think you also dislike it. Uncontrolled greed, instant gratification. Growth for the sake of growth.

Still, however, we do fall somewhere within the 99%. I guess it’s a gradient. The 99% have depth. Some are deep, all the way to the bottom – those, who have lived in the slums, who have never had the chance to get a proper education, or to even think about getting a proper job. Some are close to the middle – maybe you and I? And some are almost afloat, almost touching that other 1%. And yet, they are not that 1%.

We are the 99% – the people who trusted and were lied to. Don’t you see it?

Somebody lied to us in order to make quick cash – hand over fist.

Don’t you see it?

I do.

8 Replies to “i disagree”

  1. And I kind of agree. I chose a public University in Sofia with no tuition. I lived in a dormitory and I received scholarship. I stopped asking for additional money from my dad the minute that I started working which was in my four year in University. I never desired or bought things beyond my means.

  2. цялата работа е заради това instant gratification… виж кака ти Шаная какви ги е пяла още през 2002 :)http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iEe3hBXZEyI

    (клипът е много хубав също :))

  3. Ok, time for me to say a few things in regards to that post.

    First of all let me say this outright- I agree with the colleague student 100%.
    Obviously just stating something like this without providing sufficient arguments sounds rather inappropriate in such discussion.

    I would first like to comment the part saying that the Bank (and the Financial institutions in general) are supposed to protect us.
    I simply I cannot agree. After all in the end we are the ones responsible for our lives and money. We cannot expect someone else to bear such responsiblity. In my point of view we have a situation similar to asking a sales person in the I.T. store what product to buy. That person is getting a bonus for selling me the most expensive product available, which in most cases is not the best one for us. Taking that into consideration I simply cannot blame a person offering me Bank Credit for not taking my needs into consideration. Clearly he is mainly concerned with getting that huge bonus for giving me the loan.

    The Second part I want to discuss is the “savings part” and the equal oportunities. I started working when I was 17- I was started cleaning the common areas of flat complex and have been working ever since. One needs to work for his “Equal Oportunities”. As the colleagues student says- You have to work your @$$ off for everything you have, because no one is going to hand you anything. So if you want to save money- well it’s your decision and cannot blame anyone for not been able to. After all you have decided to take loan yourself, no one forced you.

  4. “The bank should, ideally, try to protect you, because (read before you jump!) you are, essentially, its asset.”

    Only if they are rational.
    And they are not – instant gratification.

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